An Acceptance of Insignificance
by acigarisjustacigar
Summary: Set a few years before the canon events of Far Cry 3. OC/Vaas (hopefully not out of character at all). A headcanonical study of Vaas' final push into insanity. (A big thank-you to my boyfriend who wrote the prologue and epilogue, and painstakingly assisted me in writing Vaas' character.) Vaas receives an unexpected gift from Hoyt. Trigger warnings for most of the stuff in the game.
1. Prologue

How many fuckin' people do you think go missing every fuckin' day, eh? Five, maybe ten thousand? Now, out of all those poor, clueless little fuckers, how many do you think make it home to their familia? I'd say about… half of them. And they go on with their pointless, boring fucking lives. The other half? Most of those little shits die, or fuck off to some new life away from their fucking kids and boring ass job. Those that don't? The ones that just fuck off into the mist? They, hermana, are the ones with a fucking story.


	2. Chapter One

Sun filtered through the office blinds in what seemed to the unwilling visitor to be aggressive blades of light. He winced and raised a hand to shade his eyes, half-glaring at his boss lounging in the chair with his tastefully shoed feet crossed on the desk.

"Are you listening to me, Vaas?" Hoyt snapped suddenly, with all the impatience of an agitated headmaster. The young pirate raised an eyebrow, his headache intensifying with every small movement.

"Of course. What do you think I am, fucking retarded?" He grumbled.

"What I'm _saying _is that you've done such good work for me over the last couple of years." Hoyt rested his fingertips together with an amiable smile, eyes darting over Vaas' attire. The red wifebeater and blue trousers his subordinate always wore were filthy and his Mohawk was drooping slightly, the shaved sides getting a little long and tufted. A bad couple of weeks with the acid, as far as Hoyt could guess. "This is a little unusual of me but do hear me out." He raised a finger. "I propose a reward. No, shh." He gestured at Vaas roughly when he opened his mouth to talk. "Let me finish. A product handpicked by myself for you. To do with as you wish."

Vaas narrowed his eyes and cocked his head, trying to quench his usual annoyance at Hoyt's sing-song South African accent in favour of interest at his offer.

"Okay, I'll hear this out."

"Of course you will. A wonderful arrangement, at severe personal cost to me, mind you. This one may have fetched me quite the pretty penny so I do trust you'll enjoy yourself." Hoyt busied himself with various papers and waved a hand dismissively. "You may pick him up on your way out."

Vaas paused as he was rising from his chair and his boss raised an eyebrow, daring the young Hispanic man to say a word. "Is there a problem, Vaas?"

"No boss. Thank you boss." Vaas bowed extravagantly and strode from the office with more force than was necessary, taking the time to slam his hand into the face of one of his boss' soldiers, sending the startled figure crashing into a wall. His comrades stopped Vaas at the door of the building, wordlessly steering a figure in a hood and trussed up with cable ties towards him.

The boy- for he wasn't much of a man, Vaas decided, such a skinny little runt- made no sound or movement, so he must have been imported. Tame. He clicked his tongue, thoroughly bored with the whole affair, and grabbed the boy by the arm, tugging him roughly into the sun.

Several hours later, that same unrelenting heat and light was dying down over the trees of the jungle, staining the sky and sea shimmering hues of pink and orange. Vaas sat enjoying a joint and a beer in the last light of the evening as it cast a spotlight on himself and the boy through the windows of his den. The pirate reclined on the piled up mattresses, porn, sport and music playing soundlessly on the various televisions lying around. He hadn't removed the hood, it only just occurring to him that his charge likely hadn't eaten or had a drink for a while before he'd picked him up. With a grudging slope in his shoulders he suddenly abandoned his substances and drew his machete, cutting through the cable tie around the boy's neck. The plastic gave almost instantly and snapped off. With a flourish, Vaas tugged the black sack away and tossed it aside, getting to work on the ones around the boy's wrists.

"What is your name." He demanded quietly. A pair of wide green eyes, unfocussed slightly by pain and hunger, rose timidly through a slightly dirty and matted fringe of peroxide blonde hair and auburn roots that showed through neglect. A snub freckled nose wrinkled at the unwashed scents of Vaas' and his own body as the boy licked his dry lips and rubbed at the slices in his wrist from the makeshift bonds.

"Corey." His voice wavered. "My name is Corey." His accent was high English, clear as a bell and perfectly enunciated. Vaas backhanded him roughly and grabbed his slightly sallow cheeks.

"No it's not. You don't have a name until I give you one, and I might never want to. You got it? You are nameless." He brought his face closer to Corey's terrified features. "You are nothing. Without me, you have no name, no identity. Do you understand me?" Corey nodded, bobbing his head as quickly as the question was asked. "I'm glad we understand each other, hermano." Vaas shoved him away, walking back over to the mattress and picking up the half-empty beer bottle. He advanced on Corey, who cringed away, and placed it in front of him. "Thirsty? Drink." The boy's pale, shaking fingers reached out, earning a swift kick from Vaas' laced boots. The third knuckle of Corey's right hand dislocated, drawing a wail of pain from him as he clutched it. "What do you fucking say?" Vaas suddenly exploded. "Huh? What do you fucking say?" He raised a fist as though to strike the boy.

"P-please! Thank you!" Corey yelped, raising his arm over his face as some way of protection. Vaas sneered and struck him anyway, a loose but harsh cuff around the head.

"You're nothing." He repeated, and stormed from the den, leaving Corey to grab the bottle like a starving dog does a bone and drink down the remaining liquid, some dribbling past his eager lips to drip to the filthy floor.


	3. Chapter Two

Days passed and Corey fell ill. Sores dotted his body and his ribs were visible under the pale skin marred red with sunburn. Too afraid to leave the den, too afraid to stab Vaas in the throat when he did eventually come to pass out in a drugged haze, he remained there. His master rarely remembered to feed him or bring him water so he'd taken to hoarding anything he got in a corner before hunger took the better of him and he binged on the various overripe fruits and packs of junk food. He slept little and was plagued with a hacking cough, which only served to enrage Vaas and earned him a kick to the ribs every time the pirate heard it.

One night Corey passed out, his eyes fluttering closed as he slipped into a darkness that relieved him of his agony. A couple of times he wavered into consciousness, the ground coming into view as he felt himself being carried roughly like a sack of food, but the image was soon gone, and when he awoke, his head near split in two with pain.

"You've lost two days." Vaas murmured from the mattresses. The televisions blared silently, causing the shadows of the pirate's face to flicker eerily. Corey rose to sitting, his limbs shaking. "You should be really feeling it right now, eh, hermano?" He found himself surrounded by bottles of water, one of which he unscrewed and gulped down furiously without permission. Vaas seemed unperturbed aside from an empty can chucked at the boy's head as though to gently remind him of his manners. Corey took the hint and gestured at a nearby orange.

"Please?" he croaked, his voice cracking from lack of use. Vaas shrugged.

"Be my guest." He dismissed, waving a hand. He waited until Corey's hand was closed around the fruit, then clapped his hands, making the boy drop it in fright. A grin split Vaas' scarred face. "I'm just fuckin' with ya, amigo." The older man shook his head, chuckling. "No wonder you wound up here, you fuckin' pussy."

Corey was paying little attention at this point, back up against the wall, hungry fingers splitting the orange open and scrabbling at the edible fruit inside. "Ay, I'm talking to you." Vaas threw another can. This time his target ducked just in time and the sour beer spilled out onto the floor. Vaas was deadly quiet for a moment, causing Corey to pause and look up from eating. He barely had time to register what was happening before his owner had him by the throat and up against a wall. "Maybe I didn't make myself clear enough the first time, bitch." He snarled. "I own you. You wouldn't exist if it weren't for me. You didn't exist before me. If you were to cease to fuckin' exist, and I were to remain, it'd make no difference to my world- and if I were to die, and you remain, you'd have nothing. Do you hear me? Nothing!" He screamed in the boy's face. "You will take everything I give you. You will thank me. And believe me hermano, by this time soon? You won't want to live without it." Vaas tossed Corey aside, causing him to fall painfully on his clumsily bandaged sores. By the time he'd recovered from the way his head knocked against the wall, Vaas was gone, and he was alone once more.

It was several hours before Vaas deigned to return, dawn just a few more away. He stumbled in, blinking and kicking over a ring of bottles. Corey awoke with a start and scrambled away from the noise, at which the returning pirate simply grunted as he collapsed on the mattresses after stripping off his wifebeater. After a while the pirate simply stared at the ceiling, willing the shapes and visions and loud noises in his head to cease. He turned his head slightly and watched Corey with wide, baleful eyes, their icy blue a contrast to his tanned skin and dark hair. They stayed there a little while, staring at each other.

A shaky smile quirked at one side of Vaas' mouth, and he reached out a hand, making a small curling motion with his fingers, bloodied and dirty. "Come here, Menino." He murmured. Corey hesitated for a moment, but not too much to invoke his owner's wrath. Slowly he struggled to his feet, scrawny legs quivering as he took a few cautious, barefooted steps and stood over Vaas, who clicked his tongue and pulled him down into sitting by the wrist. He didn't let go for a little while, keeping that iron grip around the skinny limb, before reaching up with fingers shaking almost as much as Corey's were and brushing them against the soft skin of the boy's cheek. Corey froze, eyes widening in shock. "Shh, shhh. Don't you dare fucking move." Vaas murmured, his breathing becoming laboured. Corey's pale face coloured slightly with embarrassment, but he tried to do as he was told. Vaas' thumb brushed along the line of the blush, and the older man's breath caught in his throat as he waited in some dazed mockery of patience for Corey to stop fidgeting awkwardly. "Shhh. I'm not going to tell you again, Menino." That phrase again. It sent a jolt through Corey, starting at his abdomen and crackling up like sparks. Slowly, his muscles relaxed, and he leaned into the contact, eyes drooping shut a little.

A closed fist slammed into Corey's face and sent him crashing to the ground. He had barely enough time to throw his arms up in defence before another smashed against his ribcage, cracking one and bruising several more. He caught a glimpse of Vaas's face in between the strikes, wide-eyed, snarling... terrified. His blue eyes were manic with a cold, gut wrenching fear.

Corey waited it out. He waited until Vaas stopped, breathing as though he'd run a mile, bare chest heaving. Slowly he got to his feet from his position straddling Corey's skinny little body, towering over him. He burst out laughing and kicked at his victim roughly. "Got you for a moment there didn't I, you little faggot?" He stepped over Corey and went back to bed, throwing himself down roughly onto his mattress, still cackling roughly. "Stupid slut." He turned over and faced away from Corey, who, with a dead, blank look in his green eyes, crawled back to his corner and curled against the wall, staring at it until dawn illuminated the filth of the room.


	4. Chapter Three

"Get up."

Corey ignored the harsh voice penetrating his dreams. Maybe if he kept his eyes tight shut enough it would disappear. It would all disappear. He would disappear and become nothingness. "I said get up, bitch."

Corey turned over and opened his eyes blearily to see Vaas looking down at him with something unfathomable in his eyes. "You fuckin' stink, you know that?" The pirate nudged the boy with the toe of his boot. "Come on. It's time you appreciated the place your sorry ass has landed." He strode from the den, giving no indication that he expected anything other than Corey's attendance. Sure enough, the boy was soon scrambling to his feet, arms crossed self-consciously over his chest and his green eyes blinking from the sudden sunlight. The dirty little town wasn't so much to behold as he half-jogged after his owner. "You ain't seen nothin' of my island yet, have you?" Vaas asked. Corey shook his head, keeping his gaze downcast, mostly to avoid the broken glass that could shear through the skin of his bare feet. "C'mon hermano. Cat got your tongue?" Vaas shook his head dismissively and climbed in to what looked like some sort of off road buggy. Corey climbed in next to him and quickly discovered the handholds as it roared into life and sped out of the town and onto the rough road through the jungle.

Vaas let out a wild laugh and a whoop as they jumped a small ravine, swerving offroad. When they finally screeched to a halt they were near-perched at the edge of a shallow cliff leading down into a raging river. Corey's breath caught as he looked out onto the view of jungle and river.

"Where are we?" He murmured.

"Stop asking questions, it doesn't suit you." Vaas snapped. One large hand reached out and grabbed Corey by the upper arm, shoving him towards the edge. "Go take a bath. You can find your own way back."

"No. No please, oh god no!" Corey yelped, trying to scramble back from the edge. Vaas grimaced with irritation.

"Stop being a fucking pussy." He growled, and shoved. Corey tumbled over the edge, hitting his shoulder sharply before plummeting down and into the water.

He hit the cold current hard, the shock knocking the breath out of him and he took in water. It dragged him to the surface and he hacked up mouthfuls of water, gasping for breath and flailing desperately before he hit a log, hard. He scrambled at it with desperate fingers before tugging himself up, laying across it and wheezing until he could pull himself to the bank and lay down on the earth, face turned up to the sun and water still coming up with every cough.

After a while, he'd recovered enough to pull himself to his feet and look around. A bridge spanned across the river above him, cars rumbling across every so often. It had to be the way back, but he had to find a less sheer place to climb up so he could find the road. He made to start walking when a thought stopped him. Why go back? He sat and drank from the river, trying to calm himself a little and dry out in the late afternoon sun.

He thought of what his owner would do to him if he didn't and shuddered, but he was also grasped by a sudden fear of his surroundings. The jungle around him had been alive with noise when he and Vaas had arrived, but now it was near-silent except for the cars on the bridge and the river rushing by. He started scrambling up a part of the cliff that seemed more manageable than the rest, clawing at the loose rocks and dirt with difficulty until he pulled himself to the top.

Instantly he ducked down again. Three men in wifebeaters matching that of Vaas' wandered just a few metres away, guns clutched in their hands. Too late, he realized, as one of them caught his gaze and let out an animalistic whoop. Corey bolted, skinny legs moving with surprising speed as he zigzagged to avoid the rapid gunfire. When he lost them in the undergrowth behind him he shot up the nearest tree, tears streaming down his cheeks with fear as he desperately reached for the top. As the sun dipped towards the trees, he looked down, the leering faces of the pirates becoming like devils in the half-light.

As the evening wore on, Vaas was growing irritated with waiting, sitting atop the tin roof of one of the buildings and watching the road intently. He stood up and cursed loudly, throwing a beer bottle to smash on the ground below.

"I want a line of blow and a vehicle, now." Having received both of his requests, pupils large as dinner plates, he roared out of the town, speeding down the rapidly darkening road. He killed the engine when he reached the bridge and listened closely.

"Come on, white boy, come on down!" One of the pirates crowed, making noises as though to coax down a cat.

"Let's just shoot the fuckin' asshole." His associate grumbled. "It's no fun anymore."

"Oh really?" Vaas called out. The pirates froze in fear at his voice and turned around, agonizingly slow. Corey felt his heart leap into his mouth as he saw Vaas coming through the trees. He wore a manic grin and a grenade launcher was clasped in his arms. "So sorry that my property is failing to amuse you, amigos."

"Listen, Vaas, we didn't know, we wouldn't..."

"Ah, foresight's twenty-twenty, hermanos." Vaas shouldered the gun, and Corey shut his eyes tight, wrapping himself around the branch he clutched. Three horrifying screams tore the air before an explosion rocked it. The tree Corey was clutching lurched violently, creaked, and fell.

Despite his best efforts Corey was flung several feet into the undergrowth when the tree crashed to the jungle floor. The ringing in his ears from the blast was intensified by being thrown, rolling helplessly, from the branches. He hadn't much time to rest before Vaas pulled him out. "Couldn't even last half a day, huh." He growled. "Disappointing, amigo, very disappointing." Half-dragging the boy back to the truck, he threw the launcher in the back and climbed in to the driver's seat, gaze intent on the road as he backed them out and back on to the road. Corey curled in the passenger's seat, eyes wide and staring like a frightened animal. The name he'd heard in the jungle reverberated in his terrified mind until it became a mantra.

_Vaas._


	5. Chapter Four

Corey almost relished being back in his corner, having been carried and dumped roughly there by Vaas whilst still curled up, hugging his knees to his chest. He was alone, watching the silent pictures on the screens of the televisions, until a banging of a door announced Vaas' return. Corey shut his eyes and did his best to pretend to be asleep.

"I know you ain't sleeping, _Menino_." Vaas murmured. Corey opened his eyes with something of a jolt and a small gasp, barely audible, but Vaas seemed to hear it. He stood in the doorway, a smirk playing around his lips. "You feel that, huh. That's what I was talking about, amigo. You ain't gonna want to live without it." The pirate threw himself down on his mattresses and stretched out, wifebeater riding up to expose the muscles of his abdomen and the definition of his hipbones. Corey caught his eyes roaming over his owner and looked at the ground instead before Vaas could meet his gaze. He heard a knowing chuckle nonetheless. "What, you a fag? For real? Guess it's no surprise to me, Menino." Vaas sat up, legs crossed and one hand propping up his chin as he watched the boy cowering in the corner of his room. Corey stayed silent. It was safer that way. Vaas chuckled again, beckoning with a hand and a clicking of his tongue.

Corey obeyed instantly, this time knowing to sit before Vaas, recovering his folded-up position and aiming to make himself as small as possible. Vaas licked his lips. Killing always put him in the mood to fuck, and tonight was no exception. And it's what these slaves were bought and paid for, right? His curiosity and the stimulants running through his system got the better of him and he grabbed Corey by the chin, his hand darting out like a snake. He moved closer, pulling the terrified boy close and putting his lips to his ear. "What's wrong, _Menino? _Tell me what you want."

Unpredictably, even to Vaas, Corey let out a long, drawn-out whimper and squirmed in his owner's grip. Vaas couldn't help himself. He cackled with laughter. "Oh, oh I _see _now." He tugged the boy roughly, pulling him onto the mattresses and pinning him there with one large hand placed on his chest. He looked down and saw the tell-tale hardness forming in Corey's tattered jeans. "Holy shit. You..." He shook his head, a wicked grin forming on his lips, for once lost for words. He peered down at his hapless prey, having to admit that he was pretty fucking hard himself at this point. "Alright then."

He released Corey and straightened up, seeming to the boy to tower over him, a mass of muscle and scars and wicked blue eyes that pinned him in place. "You want it so bad? Then get it." Corey stared up at him, quivering for a moment, before reaching out a hand to the growing bulge in Vaas' jeans. Vaas struck him with the back of his hand. "Don't think I'm gonna play nice if you choose to go down this road, Menino. And don't think I'm not above beating you till you're bleeding if I don't think you're as good as you should be. And don't think you don't still need to _fucking. Ask. Nicely."_

Corey gulped and nodded, chewing on his full bottom lip anxiously.

"P-please."

"Please _what, _Menino. What do you want?"

"Please may I have... please may I have your cock." Corey's cheeks burned bright red, only serving to make Vaas that little bit more eager to be fucking that pretty little face. Vaas motioned.

"Be my guest." He sneered. Corey scrabbled hungrily at the belt buckle and fly lying between himself and his prize and, finding that Vaas wore no underwear, was quick to be united with it. He let out a little gasp and a moan, taking the thick length in one hand so he could lap at the head, suckling away the precum that had formed. Vaas took a sharp breath and pressed his hips forward. "What're you waiting for, slut." He growled, knotting his hands in Corey's hair and forcing his cock into the boy's hot mouth.

Both Corey and Vaas moaned in unison, Vaas' hips jerking slightly with the sheer pleasure of released anticipation, forcing the head further towards the back of Corey's mouth. The boy choked slightly. "Choking already? I want you to take that shit so far you can tongue my fucking balls." Vaas snarled, pushing the bleach blonde head down further. Corey struggled, trying to relax his throat and did as Vaas bid, inducing another throaty moan. "Fuck, yeah." Vaas groaned as Corey began to work his cock, running his lips and tongue up and down the long shaft. "You'd better get that shit wet, Menino." When Vaas finally pushed Cory away the length of his cock was glistening. "That's it. Now take off your fucking clothes."

Obediently Cory wriggled out of his jeans, revealing a pert little ass and his painfully hard cock, which Vaas nudged with his boot as he stood up. Corey yelped with the sudden pain to the hypersensitive area, making his owner laugh sharply. "Now get the fuck up against that wall. Hands against it. Perk that ass." His voice became dangerous and heavily laced with a sudden hunger. "I SAID FUCKING PERK IT!" A shuddering Corey did as he was bid and shut his eyes, waiting, the anticipation and desperation making his legs shake. Vaas gripped hold of his ass for a moment and slapped it sharply, tugging at his cock with the other hand. "That's it, Menino." He murmured as he positioned the head against Corey's asshole. "That's it..."

His words trailed off into a groan of pleasure as he pushed inside the younger boy, who stifled a yelp of pain as he was stretched past his limit. Vaas took hold of his hair again and thrust in up to the hilt, moaning as he began to slowly fuck the tight little hole. Corey bit his lip hard, tears coming to his eyes as Vaas' speed quickly increased. He whimpered and squirmed in agony, feeling Vaas' cock twitch in reaction. Fingers dug deeper into his ass in a bid to make him squeak, and he did so, but it quickly turned to a high-pitched moan which seemed to spur Vaas on even more.

After a while his owner seemed to grow bored and pulled out, examining the gape he had left Corey with and leaving another handprint on the boy's ass with a sharp, ringing slap. "On your back." Corey lay down and opened his legs, displaying himself even as his face burned with shame. Vaas pushed his knees back, tilting his hips so he could slip his cock back inside, his face contorting with pleasure as he began to pound what was his again. Corey threw his head back and moaned in ecstasy as Vaas' cock found his sweet spot. "Don't you fucking dare cum." His owner snarled, slamming his cock into the tight opening with a renewed ferocity. "Not yet. Not yet..." Vaas fumbled, wrapping a hand around Corey's cock and pumping it. "Now. Cum for me. Cum for me, you little bitch!"

As Corey's cock splashed cum from his stomach to his jawline he burrowed his nails into the mattress, screaming his owner's name. Vaas, taken completely by surprise by the renewed pleasure of Corey's ass clamping down on his cock and that sweet scream of his name, unloaded pump after pump of hot cum deep into Corey's ass. He burrowed his teeth hard into the delicate skin of the boy's shoulder, leaving it bitten near to bleeding as he growled out the last of his orgasm. Soon after he'd caught his breath, however, he pulled out, pulled up his jeans and rolled over. "Get in your fucking corner." he snapped, staring at one of the flickering screens. "I'm done with you."

Whimpering slightly as the pain returned, Corey tugged on his jeans and curled up in his nest of old food wrappers, biting back tears and burrowing his face in his arm. He listened and watched intently for any indication that Vaas would change his mind, his body aching from the exertions of the day. Though he fought against it, his eyelids drooped and finally closed, the darkness sending him spirally into an uneasy sleep.


	6. Chapter Five

Corey often awoke in pain these days, but the moment he opened his eyes they snapped shut again and a drawn-out whimper escaped his lips. Bruises lined every limb of his body and blood and cum had dried on his chest. One or two cuts were inflamed and oozing, hot to the touch. His head spun, his throat was raw and when he tried to stand his legs shook furiously. He peered out of a window, trying to gauge what time it was, and watched as Vaas arrived in a cloud of dust and fumes, jumping out of the truck and tugging on the hand of a stumbling girl with a skirt up to the middle of her thighs. She fell into him, giggling with one hand on his chest. Corey felt bile rise in his throat and looked away, sitting down heavily and putting his head in his hands. Despite his best prayers Vaas and the girl were soon stumbling into the den and the pirate pulled her towards the mattresses. He said nothing to Corey, simply watched him over the girl's shoulder or through her hair as they fucked, never breaking eye contact, never dropping the satisfied smirk on his lips.

Corey watched him back, green eyes impassive but his hands curling into fists on his knees. He gave no indication that the situation moved him at all, only keeping his gaze fixed on Vaas' face, which slowly began to contort. His smirk changed to a tight-lipped line of anger and his eyes burned into Corey's, until finally he shoved the girl away, causing her to land painfully off the mattresses and onto the hard floor. She shrieked in protest and Vaas reached out, grabbing her by the hair and pulling her into standing, cock still hard as he bundled it back into his pants.

"Pull your fucking skirt down." He snapped, picking up her panties and stuffing them into her mouth, snapping his fingers at Corey. "Menino. Come."

Corey obeyed, getting to his feet and following Vaas out into the town. The girl was bundled into the back of the truck she and Vaas had arrived in and started wailing in fear, banging at the sides. Vaas slammed a fist into the doors. "Shut the fuck up!" He screamed. "Get in, Menino, and not a fucking word, you hear?" He slammed the accelerator and they roared from the town, not stopping even when they almost ran down several pirates returning from a job. Corey watched Vaas carefully but his owner remained completely unreadable as they reached a patch of burned earth. A stench of death rose from a pit in the centre of it, making Corey's hand fly to his mouth and nose as they exited the van.

Vaas pulled the girl from the back and shoved her towards the pit, pulling a handgun from the holster at his thigh and shoving it into Corey's hands. "Hold that, Menino." He demanded and pulled a rifle from the seat of the truck. The girl peered over the edge of the pit and began wailing again, holding her head in her hands and pleading, wide-eyed with terror as she fell to her knees. "Alright, Menino. Safety's off, even a fucking imbecile could do it. Shoot her."

Corey froze and turned to stare at Vaas, and then at the gun. He shook his head furiously and took a step back. Vaas raised the rifle and pointed it at the boy. "If you don't, amigo, I'm going to blow her fucking head off. Kill the bitch, or I'll do it. Now."

"No." Corey mumbled. Vaas advanced on him, fury etched on his face.

"What did you say? Huh?"

"No." Corey repeated, taking a step away and shaking his head again. He gnawed on his bottom lip. "No. I won't do it. I can't."

"What, you think you're going to fucking prison for it?" Vaas prodded him in the chest with the rifle. "She's gonna die either way. Shoot her, Menino, or I'll make you fucking pay for it. I'll make you hurt, I swear to fucking god, unless you shoot this bitch, now. Ten. Nine."

Corey raised the gun, his breath catching in his chest as the girl's pleas became higher and louder.

"Eight. Seven."

He squeezed his eyes tight shut and gritted his teeth, running a finger over the trigger as Vaas counted down.

"Four. Three. Two."

With a cry Corey dropped the gun and lunged to get between the girl and the rifle.

"One."

The bullet clipped his ear in a burst of blood as it whistled towards its target, embedding itself in the girl's skull and knocking her backwards into the pit. Corey curled on the ground, one hand clutching the side of his head as blood trickled through his fingers. Vaas strode over to the pit, peering over the side and sniggering, before walking past Corey and tapping his head roughly. "What's the matter Menino, don't like your new piercing? I said I'd make you hurt."

When they returned Corey felt sick and dizzy, pale from the loss of blood. Vaas rooted in the girl's handbag, pocketing any cash and drugs, before drawing out a sanitary towel and slapping it to the side of Corey's head. "What? It says three times more absorbent." He cackled and reclined on his mattresses, rolling a joint from the little bag he'd taken from the girl's belongings.

Corey held the pad to his ear until the bleeding stopped, then tossed it aside and buried his face in his hands, beginning to shake. Tears ran down his face, making tracks in the dirt, sweat and blood and dripping to the floor, though not a sound escaped him. Vaas watched him with a cocked eyebrow. "Ay." He snapped, making Corey jump. "You stop that now, Menino." The boy refused to look at him or even obey, simply staring at the floor and still letting the tears slide down his cheeks.

He heard the stomp of Vaas' boots coming towards him and braced himself for a blow, but large, rough hands closed around his own and pulled them away from his face with something that almost resembled gentleness. Vaas crouched in front of him and forced his chin upwards. "You could have killed me today, Menino. I put a gun in your hand. You could have..." He put his fingers to Corey's head in an imitation of a gun. "Bang. And it would have all have been over. But you didn't. And now you've got a hole in your ear because you couldn't even shoot some skanky chica that I fucked in front of your very eyes." He shook his head. "And now you're back here pissing blood. Is this what you want? Is this what you thought you'd be spending the rest of your life doing?" His eyes were cold, searching Corey's face with invasive calculation. Corey met his gaze, staying silent but wiping the tears from his cheeks. Vaas paused for a moment, shaking his head with a heavy sigh. "It's down to you that you are here, Menino. The choices that you made in life have brought you here. If I see you crying again, I'll take your eyes out with a fucking knife. Am I clear?"

Corey nodded, steeling himself and raising his chin. Vaas stood, tugging the boy upwards, still keeping his grip on his hands. He steered him towards the mattresses and forced him to sit. "You stay there and wait for me, you understand?" Vaas let go and turned away.

"Vaas." Corey croaked. His owner paused, looking over one broad shoulder and raising an eyebrow.

"What, Menino."

"I will."

"I know you will." Vaas' mouth quirked into a smirk and he left.


	7. Chapter Six

"Say my name Menino." Vaas husked into Corey's ear. He clutched the boy's skinny back, gritting his teeth and growling slightly when Corey's fingers burrowed into his shoulders. "Come on. Say it for me." He was back here again, for what must have been for the fifth time- and today he wasn't even high. Vaas pondered to himself as he was buried up to the base in his slave as to why exactly things had turned out this way, but he wasn't to look a gift horse in the mouth. He enjoyed the boy's... abilities, and Vaas was in the habit of taking what he enjoyed.

"V-Vaas..." Corey moaned.

"Louder." Vaas demanded. He slammed his cock into Corey a little harder, sweat forming on his naked back with the exertion. The boy threw back his head and near-screamed his name, getting closer and closer until he came, becoming a quivering wreck in Vaas' arms. The pirate unloaded into him with a snarl, gripping his hair and raking his dirty fingernails across Corey's bruised skin.

They caught their breath for a moment. Corey was still shaking, his face buried in the crook of Vaas' neck. "Ay. Menino. Menino?" Vaas gave Corey an experimental push and his blue eyes widened as Corey's arms wrapped around his neck and seemed to not want to let go. "No. No, no." Vaas physically picked the boy up off his cock and dumped him to one side on the mattress. "No way, Menino. Not now, not ever." He huffed as Corey looked up at him with an expression of deep hurt.

"I was just-"

"I know what you were doing, bitch." Vaas gave him a cuff round the head, not too rough, but enough to make his eyes water. "No. Don't you dare do that to me again, you understand? I scratched you because making you bleed gives me a hard on. I fuck you because you're tight, and I own your ass anyway. We ain't some beauty and the beast kind of shit. I'm a fucking monster, and you're my prey. Do you hear me? You belong to me. That's all it is."

Corey curled into a ball as though Vaas' words were blows, causing the pirate to lose his temper. "Man, fuck you, you little fag." He exploded, pulling on his clothes. "Get dressed. Or don't, I don't fucking care. Weak ass piece of shit." He stormed outside, plucking an unlit joint from the mouths of one of his men and lighting it before the man could protest, not that he'd dare. His battered phone rang in his pocket, and he flicked it open. "What."

"Vaas, I have your payment here. Come and pick it up in an hour or it's someone else's."

"Can't you have it dropped off?" Vaas growled, his bad mood seeping into his tone.

"I want to talk with you."

"We're on the phone."

"Vaas, I swear to fucking god-"

"Alright, alright. I'll be there in an hour." Vaas shut the phone and shoved it back in his pocket with a snarl. He took his time getting there, walking into Hoyt's office just as the clock announced an hour and five minutes had passed. Hoyt raised his eyebrow but said nothing, pushing a kilogram of cocaine and a fat envelope of money across the desk.

"Sit down, Vaas, and have a cigar."

The pirate obeyed, taking a seat and lighting up. "So. I trust you've been having fun with my gift?" Hoyt inquired, leaning over the desk a little.

"What? Oh, that. Yeah, I guess so." Vaas grunted and shrugged. Hoyt raised an eyebrow and waggled one finger.

"You ought to be careful, Vaas."

"What are you talking about?" He snapped.

"A few of the men have been... talking. They say they saw you _carrying _the boy." Vaas' boss smirked. "Of course, I said it was nonsense. But one does not want these rumours to get out of hand." Something flashed in Hoyt's eyes as that shit-eating smile played around his thin lips.

"I can control my own men." Vaas growled. "Whoever's been making up shit has a death wish or something."

"Oh I'm sure. Just be cautious." Hoyt sat back and laughed. "But of course, what does it matter? It's just a bit of fuckmeat, yes? If you get bored of him, do bring him back relatively cleaned up. I'm sure Buck would take him."

Vaas' hand played over the knife strapped to his calf and he suppressed the urge to embed it in Hoyt's head.

"Yeah, sure, boss. Can I go now?" he sighed. Hoyt watched him carefully for a moment, before waving a hand.

"Yes Vaas, you're dismissed." Hoyt watched his man leave and placed his fingertips together, the cogs in his mind beginning to whirr.

A few miles away, Corey was sat in his corner, eyed fixed on one of the screens and completely unaware of a shadow creeping into the den behind him until it spoke in hushed, wavering tones.

"Don't move."

Corey froze. The voice wasn't Vaas, it was too nervous, too quiet. He felt a gun being pressed to the back of his head and warm breath on his neck.

"Who... what..." Corey whimpered, every sense in red alert.

"Be quiet." He heard the clumsy one-handed unzipping of a fly. "Tell anyone about this and I'll kill you, alright?"

"He'll kill you first." Corey murmured, grim satisfaction breaking through the horrific realization. "He's already been gone two hours. He'll be back soon."

"Shut up you little-"

The moment his attacker took the gun away from his skull Corey threw himself backwards, knocking into the man and catching him off guard. The gun clattered away and Corey lunged after it. The pirate grabbed him around the middle but found his victim wriggling away from his grip and the gun was suddenly at his throat.

"Get off me, you fucking scum." Corey hissed. The pirate stood with his hands up and terror on his young face.

"Now come on, I was just playing around." Watching Corey carefully as the frightened boy scrambled to his feet, the older man took a tactical step towards the AK-47 propped up against the wall.

"Don't think I won't do it!" Corey roared, brandishing the gun. "Don't move or I'll shoot!"

"Yeah whatever, boy." The pirate sniggered. "You won't do it. That's why I'm here and you're there. You're nothing but a bitch. I thought you'd be used to taking it in the ass, picky slut. Now just give me the gun, and I'll be gent-"

His kneecap exploded in a shower of blood and cartilage. As the pirate fell to the ground clutching the blown limb and screaming in pain Corey stepped back, keeping the gun trained on him but holding his mouth to stop himself from throwing up.

It was at this opportune moment that the man of the house decided to return. Corey heard the truck pulling in to the town and ran to the window, eyes wide. Vaas looked up and caught his eye, just in time to see a bloodied hand grab his face and pull him back. Bursting into the room Vaas threw the shrieking pirate off Corey and slammed him up against a wall, putting two and two together as Corey crawled into one corner, terrified.

"You think you can come in here and fuck my property while I'm gone?" Vaas demanded, shoving his thumb into the messy bullet wound and making the pirate howl. "I'll fucking show you to try and touch what I own, you fuck!" Vaas proceeded to slam his underling's head against a wall. And again. He repeated the motion until the skull cracked and splintered, then dropped the man, watching his body seizure and lay still.

"You kneecapped him." Vaas turned to Corey and said matter-of-factly. Corey nodded, eyes darting from the body to Vaas. "There may be hope for you yet, Menino. Did he fuck you?" Corey shook his head. "Was he going to?" The boy gave a nod. "Then why didn't you kill him?"

"I wanted you to have the pleasure." Corey sat back, still breathing heavily from the exertion. Vaas watched him for a while, eyes darting over his form before breaking out into a mad cackle, blue eyes glinting.

"Like I said, there may be hope for you yet."


	8. Chapter Seven

"Vaas."

"What, Menino."

Corey looked over from where he was still scrubbing blood and brains off the wall.

"What are you doing?" He tilted his head. Vaas rolled his eyes and turned off the drill, turning to look at the boy.

"I'm putting a fucking lock on the door, Menino, what does it look like? Now get back to work." He snapped, the nail he was holding in his mouth bobbing slightly. "Nobody said you could ask questions. Now shut up or I'll come over there and hurt you good, alright?" he finished his work and straightened up, dusting his hands off. "Now, you wouldn't anyway, because I'd fucking kill you, but you leave this room and there ain't shit I'll do to stop whatever happens to you, get it?" Corey paused scrubbing and nodded obediently. "I mean it. Whoever decides they wanna fuck you, I'll let them. Whoever wants to pop a slug in your brain, they can be my guest. Your safety ends outside this door, and after the boys have had their fun, I'll throw you to the fucking tigers, dead or alive." Corey nodded again, and Vaas relaxed a little, taking the key from the new lock and slipping it around his neck on a cord. "Now come here."

A few minutes later Vaas was leaning against the newly-secured door with his cock in between Corey's lips. "Fuck, Menino... you've got such a slutty little mouth." A satisfied groan escaped him. "If I feel your teeth once I'll knock them all out." He placed his large hands at the back of Corey's head and rested his own against the door. He let the boy finish him off, making sure he swallowed the resulting load. Zipping up and not saying another word, he rewarded Corey with a sharp slap to the back of the head and locked the door as he left.

Corey settled down and curled in front of one of the television screens, trying hard to keep his throat from closing as being alone hit him like a train. It had never bothered him before, but since being attacked the previous day, he felt the need to unmute the television and feverishly attempt to distract himself. Relief flooded him when Vaas finally returned, but he kept his face impassive. "Got something for you, Menino." Vaas grinned wickedly. He threw himself down on the mattresses and opened up a small paper bag. He smirked as he drew out a smaller bag of plastic, preserving what looked like small, colourful paper stamps of some kind. "Know what this is?"

"Acid." Corey murmured. "I don't..."

"Whether you do or you don't, Menino, I don't care. If you do, it'll blow your little white-boy mind." Vaas slipped one of the tabs onto his tongue and lay back, lighting a cigarette. He offered the box to Corey, who pulled one out and mimicked him, trying very hard not to cough his lungs up. After a while Corey caved.

"May I..." He reached for the little bag and Vaas swooped it out of his reach and tutted. He tore off a tab and held it on one finger, placing it on Corey's tongue with a smirk. "Just relax, or it'll freak you out."

Corey lay back, feeling nothing for the first half hour or so, but when he propped himself up on one elbow to complain his vision wavered and doubled. Vaas watched him try to steady himself and grinned, seeming to Corey like a Mohawk-sporting Cheshire Cat. Despite what would have been his better judgement were he not rapidly reaching inebriation he plonked himself over Vaas' lap, ass perked in the air. Vaas didn't throw him off as expected, however, and amused himself by groping the boy's ass absent-mindedly.

"Vaas." Corey whispered after a while.

"What, Menino."

"I need you."

Vaas raised his head, one eyebrow cocked, raising a hand with intention to slap some sense into the boy but eventually letting it drop with a sigh.

"That's nice, Menino. Now shut up, stop interrupting my high."

"Yes Vaas."

Time slipped by at varying speeds but as he started recognising the pangs of hunger in his stomach and regaining his normal vision Corey estimated the time he'd been up and away at about eight hours. He grabbed a packet of pork scratchings off the floor and downed them hungrily, still keeping his position draped over his owner. Vaas, at closer inspection, appeared to have drifted off to sleep once he'd started to come down, and Corey experienced a rare opportunity to really study him... the tone of the muscles in his arms, the scars that dotted his body, the trail of dark hair that started at his navel and descended below the waistband of his trousers...

Suddenly his head snapped towards the door, the sudden movement making Vaas stir slightly. A shadow was cast and could be seen through the space between the door and the floor. It shifted slightly, and slowly the handle started to turn, stopping after a slight creak as whoever was behind the door discovered it was locked. The shadow remained for a moment before disappearing and soft footfalls could be just made out over Vaas' breathing. Corey remained stock still, his heart in his mouth, unable to sleep or even relax until his owner stirred and unceremoniously shoved him off with a grumble. "Vaas." Corey murmured urgently.

"What."

"There was someone outside the door. They tried to get in." A tremble of fear came into his voice. Vaas propped himself up, rubbing his head and scowling at Corey.

"You're tripping, Menino. Go to sleep or stare at the wall or something. Don't think about it." The pirate rolled over, making it plain that his leniency towards Corey's cowardice was simply a product of the acid and exhaustion. Corey curled up and watched Vaas slip back into sleep, feeling smaller than he ever had in his life.


	9. Chapter Eight

A gunshot blasted the relative peace of the jungle into smithereens. It was shortly followed by pained squealing and thrashing as Corey, fighting down a stream of vomit, ran over to the boar he'd crippled and shot it again, this time putting it out of its misery.

"I have to tell you Menino." Vaas came up behind him, tutting slightly. "I've seen native grandmothers that can shoot better than you." He cocked his head at Corey's hands, which were shaking violently. "Jesus, you've only been on it a month, Menino. You need to slow down or you're gonna snort me out of house and home."

"I've never shot a gun properly before." Corey admitted as some way of defence, shouldering the rifle with difficulty. Vaas bent down and inspected the carcass with disgust.

"You blasted its fucking legs off. You were no more than ten metres away. What's wrong with you, eh? Tonto?" He cuffed Corey roughly.

"Bashing me every time I miss a shot isn't going to improve my aim." Corey muttered, rubbing the affected area. Vaas' hand shot out and gripped him by the hair, pulling him down and shoving his face near the boar's mouth, which was currently oozing pink foam.

"You see this? You fucking see this, Menino?" He snarled. "What is it?"

"It's a pig, Vaas." Corey whimpered.

"No, it's dead. It _used _to be a pig, and now it's nothing. And this'll be you some day if you don't stop being weak as pig's fucking _piss." _He let go and shook his head as Corey struggled to regain his balance and avoid falling in the mess of blood and brains. "Ah fuck it, what do I care."

Suddenly, Corey was plunged into darkness as Vaas pulled the hood that the boy had worn all those weeks ago over his head and wrestled the rifle from his grip. He heard the zip of a cable tie and began to panic.

"No. No, no... Vaas, please, I'll do better, I'll-"

"Shut up, you fuck." Vaas snarled and tied his hands. "Walk." Corey obeyed, his heart hammering in his chest as Vaas frog marched him onward through the jungle and onto the road. He calmed once the familiar smells and sounds of the town reached him and he felt the stairs to the den beneath his feet. He kept a wide berth of the tiger cages, even in his blinded state, and finally was in the safety of Vaas' room. The hood was removed, yet Vaas made no move to cut the ties around his wrists. "In your corner, and think on your failures."

Corey slumped where he was pointed to and sighed, bottom lip curling into a pout when he thought Vaas wasn't looking. "What's the matter, Menino, is life not fair?" Vaas snapped sharply. He was in a particularly bad mood today. "I'd say your life was pretty fucking easy. You're fed, you're high half the time and all you gotta do is suck my dick once a day or so. I could make things a lot harder for you. Do you want that?"

"No, Vaas." Corey murmured sheepishly.

"No, of course you don't, you little bitch. So just stay there and-" Vaas' phone went off in his pocket and he drew it out, half looking like he was going to throw the offending item at a wall. Instead he flipped it open. "WHAT?!" he roared down the receiver, but fell silent when the voice on the other end began to babble frantically. Without even bothering to reply he snapped the phone shut and returned it to his pocket. "Gotta work, Menino. Like I said, don't fucking move."

Corey heard the key turn in the lock and Vaas' footsteps fading rapidly, followed by frantic shouts outside. Peering out of the window on tiptoes he watched Vaas, brandishing a gun and yelling orders in the streets below. Panic started to rise in his throat like bile and his bound hands shook. All seemed to come to a rough mimicry of discipline, the pirates surrounding Vaas, guns clutched in hand.

A horrendous explosion rocked the ground and a truck, mere metres away from where the pirates were standing, was reduced to a fireball in less than a second, throwing several men off their feet and engulfing them in flames. Screams ripped through the evening air, and it took Corey a moment to realize that his was one of them. He ran to the window, practically throwing himself against it, shaking from fright. Relief flooded his body like adrenaline as he saw Vaas get up, spit, and ready his gun.

"Call for backup!" Corey heard him howl at one of his men. "Call Hoyt! Now! They've got fucking rockets!" Gunfire broke out elsewhere and more screams and cries of fury could be heard. Corey wracked his brains for something, anything, before it dawned on him. Tightening the zip ties even further around his wrists he brought his arms down past his hipbones as hard as he could. It took a few tries but finally the ties snapped and he was free. He banged at the window frantically, but Vaas had disappeared out of sight. Instead his frantic gestures brought a different attention. Three men clad in blue pointed up at him and exchanged a look, before running towards the building.

Corey threw himself at the locked door desperately, but his weight was nowhere near enough to break it down, and he knew it was too late. The slamming of boots on the metal staircase could be heard, getting closer and louder by the second. Thinking of nothing else to do, Corey rushed for the AK-47 propped up against the wall and shouldered it, quivering.

Two sudden smashes against the door later and a figure, cloaked in darkness, burst in. With a feral scream Corey fired, bullets peppering the man until he fell and lay still, his friends throwing themselves back from the fire. Not wasting any time Corey took a chance, sped for the stairs outside the door and jumped the banister. He landed painfully despite the roll he attempted, but spurred himself to his feet, running awkwardly with the heavy weapon clutched in his hands. He couldn't die. Not here, not now. Vaas would kill him if he did.

He dived behind the flaming wreckage of the upturned truck, cowering with his hands over his head. The two remaining men rounded the corner, just as Corey let out a scream of terror.

"VAAS!"

He heard two shots, and flinched, but the expected agony never came. He opened his eyes to see his pursuers lying face down, the dirt surrounding their heads slowly turning red. A hand closed around his upper arm and shook him roughly. Corey looked up, green eyes wide and tearful, his face falling in agony when he saw a stranger's face staring down at him.

"You're Vaas' boy!" The pirate shouted over the gunfire. "Why the hell are you out here?"

"They... they came for me..." Corey whimpered, struggling to hold back sobs. "Where's Vaas? Please, I need..."

"I don't know if you've noticed, kid, but he's pretty fucking tied up right now! I'll take you somewhere safe. Know how to use that gun?"

"No!"

"Then you're gonna have to learn on the job! Come on!" He pulled Corey up after unzipping the combat vest he wore and pulling it over the boy's head. They lunged from their hiding place, returning the fire they were instantly under, the pirate considerably more accurately than Corey. They ducked from shield to shield, before a rocket slammed into a nearby building and threw them both off their feet. "Are you okay?" Corey's protector cried out, crawling towards him through the dust and smoke.

"Yeah! I'm fine!" Corey spluttered. "Where are we-" suddenly he felt something warm and wet splash across his face. He watched in horror as the pirate's eyes rolled back in his head and fell to the ground, unmoving. He scrambled away from the body, beginning to hyperventilate as horror gripped him.

"Menino!" He heard a furious yell from across the ramshackle street, his heart all but stopping. Vaas cleaved through one of the blue-clad fighters with one sweep of his machete, splattered in blood from head to toe and his face contorted with more blind anger than Corey had ever seen in him. The boy had never been so pleased to see him.

Vaas broke out into a run and was at the boy's side in seconds. "What the fuck are you doing out here?!" He screamed in Cory's face, shaking his shoulders.

"They broke in!" Cory wailed, gripping Vaas' arms. "I tried to find you, I..."

"Menino, I need you to run. I need you to run into the jungle, and get up a tree, anything. Like you did last time. I'll find you. Fucking run. Get out of here! NOW!"

Terrified, Corey leapt to his feet and obeyed, covering his head with the gun as he leaped a fence and threw himself into the undergrowth, not noticing the man in blue at the edge of the jungle see him and give chase. Vaas shot at the disappearing Amaniki and missed, the bullet ricocheting off the fence. "Fuck!" He cursed, and ran after Corey and his pursuer.

Corey zigzagged through the trees, stumbling and slowing down as the trees grew thicker, before bursting out onto a road. He took a moment to catch his breath, resting his hands on his knees, almost heaving with the exertion. He straightened up, throwing his head back, a manic giggle escaping his lips, just as the Amaniki burst from the undergrowth and fired the Desert Eagle he clutched in both hands. The bullet hit Corey point-blank in the chest and he fell backwards into the dirt, laying there. He didn't get up. He didn't scream. But Vaas did.

Reaching the scene in time to hear the shot and see Corey fall he charged into the Amaniki with an inhuman roar, cleaving limb from torso with his machete in a wild, hate-fuelled rage. The man's screams soon ceased and Vaas hauled himself to his feet, staring blankly out onto the road where Corey lay, motionless.

That is, until he heard him cough and whine like a child with a scraped knee, and saw him sit up, looking down at the slug embedded in the Kevlar of the combat vest. Vaas staggered slightly, coming over dizzy for a moment, before his face cracked into a maniacal grin. "Get up, Menino, that didn't hurt."

"Easy for you to say!" Corey spluttered, getting to his feet with difficulty, but a shaky smile forming on his features. "You're not the one who-"

Vaas barely had time to register the sound of the engine or the glare of the headlights before the boy was gone from his sight, the armoured vehicle hitting him at full speed.


	10. Chapter Nine

"MENINO!" Vaas howled into the dark, searching frantically for a body, listening for a cry, anything. "Menino! Answer me!" A few yards down the road the vehicle had pulled to a halt, one of Vaas' own men standing on the seat, terror etched on his face. "Menino! I can't see you, answer me now!"

"What I hit?" The pirate called out. Vaas froze and turned to the man, striding towards him with his face etched in a grim mask of fury. "What'd I hit?!"

Vaas Montenegro could have a Molotov lit and flying towards you in a matter of seconds, and now was no exception. The pirate barely had time to scream before he and the car were up in flames, illuminating the area in brilliant red. Vaas ignored the screams as he searched the roadside wildly, his blue eyes finally falling on a small figure curled at the side of the road. "Menino?" Vaas approached with careful footsteps. "Fuck."

The bone of Corey's left arm was protruding from the skin, jutting out in a jagged, bloodied shard. One of his hips was grotesquely lopsided, his face an unrecognisable, bloodied mess. "Menino?" Vaas knelt before him, his voice somewhat higher than usual. He placed a hand to Corey's chest, finding that his heart was still beating and his chest was still rising and falling, but a gurgling sounded in his throat and pinkish foam dribbled past his torn lips. Vaas thought nothing more of it, scooping him up in his arms and lifting him without any trouble. Corey's blood mingled with the splashes on his chest, and there was so much of it, more blood than Vaas had seen a person lose and still be living. They left a pool of it where the boy had been lying and Vaas began to walk determinedly down the road. "I swear to fuck, Menino, I will kill you if you die." He hissed at the boy, and by some miracle the boy raised his head and looked up at his owner, dazed.

"You came and got me." He croaked. "You said you'd come and get me."

"And here I am, Menino, now shut your fucking mouth and stay still." Vaas grunted, breaking out into a jog. "We're gonna get you fixed up, and then I'm gonna beat your ass even worse for this." He wandered through the night for what seemed like hours, but Corey was keeping up, he was sure they'd find somewhere with a medic soon-

Corey leaned over and retched blood on the road. "Fuck!" Vaas yelled, dodging out of the way of the mess and carrying on with renewed vigour. Soon he saw the lights of a town or village, and broke out into a run, but when he realized where they were he halted. They were on the outskirts of an Amaniki settlement.

He stood there, breathing heavily for a moment, before kneeling down. "Menino. Get up." Corey obeyed in a lost daze, standing with his weight leaning heavily on one leg. Vaas straightened up and slipped the vest from Corey's body, tossing it aside and pointing at the lights of the town. "There's a doctor in there. Get going."

"Vaas?" Corey whimpered. The pirate took a step back from the boy.

"I mean it. Get going. Go. And don't you dare think about coming back." The boy was almost sure to die of his injuries, and if he didn't, Vaas didn't want to know about it. "Are you fucking stupid or something? I said go!" He half-screamed. Corey shook his head, wincing.

"I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to leave the room, they came for me, they broke in, I didn't mean to..." He started to breathe in short, ragged gasps.

"You got a death wish, Menino? I said fucking get out of here!"

Corey didn't listen, reaching for Vaas desperately with his good arm, bloodied fingers grasping for clothing, a hand, anything.

"Please, Vaas, please..." The boy wailed, yelping with pain as Vaas pushed him away.

"Don't touch me!" Vaas roared. "Go, or I swear I'll fucking kill you!"

Corey wouldn't listen. He lunged for Vaas, growing more and more desperate, until Vaas had to punch him away. The pirate heard something crack under the blow and Corey fell back, choking for breath in between sobs. Tears began to flow down his cheeks, mixing painfully with the cuts and scrapes. To Vaas' horror he began to crawl, still with his good arm outstretched, a pitiful whimpering escaping his mouth.

"I need you. I need you!" The boy howled. "Don't leave me... please... please don't leave me, you were right, I've got nothing, I am nothing, there's only you!" he managed to catch hold of Vaas' leg, and kept coming, even when the pirate kicked him away and staggered backwards. Corey lunged again, springing up from his good leg, both arms outstretched as if expecting to be caught, as if expecting-

Before he realized what he was doing, Vaas drew the handgun from the holster at his thigh and put a bullet hole in Corey's forehead.

The resulting silence after the blast was deafening.


	11. Epilogue

"How many fucking people do you think go missing every fucking day, eh? Five, maybe ten thousand? Now, out of all those poor, clueless little fuckers, how many do you think make it home to their familia? I'd say about... half of them. And they go on with their pointless, boring fucking lives. The other half? Most of those little shits die, or fuck off to some new life away from their fucking kids and boring ass job. Those that don't? The ones that just fuck off into the mist? They, hermana, are the ones with a fucking story." Vaas grimaced and ran a hand over his jaw. He sat on the edge of a pit, surrounded by burnt, blackened earth. The smoke from his cigar mingled with the stench of death in a cloying, invasive fog that permeated everything. Standing, he grasped the bottle of liquor next to him and took a hearty swig. Casting his gaze down into the mass grave, he saw a what would have once resembled young girl, a bullet hole where her left eye should have been and a skirt so short it barely reached the middle of her thighs.

"Ay, puta, wanna drink?" He offered the bottle downwards, before laughing to himself. Tossing the bottle into the pit, he took another drag on his cigar. "No fucking idea what I'm even doing here. It's not like I came for the fucking conversation some rotting corpse of a whore has to offer." Dropping his cigar to the floor, Vaas stretched his shoulders and clicked his neck.

"Hey, uh, I've got some shit to do, so enjoy your fucking stay, eh?" He said in a singsong tone, pulling a grenade from his belt. His thumb removed the pin, his fingers let the striker ping off into the dark. Dropping it by his boot, he punted it into the corpse pit, turned, and began to walk. As the heat of the explosion seared his back, he strode to his truck and set off for his camp. He needed to clean the scummy nest out of the corner of his room, anyway.


End file.
